How Rebecca Yarros Learned to Log Off and Why You Should, Too (Exclusive) [Video]

When Rebecca Yarros’ romantasy Fourth Wing went viral in 2023, selling more than 2 million copies and generating over a billion views on TikTok, the author’s profile skyrocketed with it.

Almost instantly, the 43-year-old writer drew the attention of a ravenous online community, which brought adoring fans and harsh critics — including death threats — to her doorstep, sometimes literally. She and her husband, Jason, 44, were even forced to move to protect their family’s privacy and her health.

Yarros spent the next year throwing herself into her work and trying to figure out how to keep life “as normal as we could” for her two girls and four boys, ages 11 to 27, even as fans hotly debated everything from her writing ability to her personal life.

“It was a tidal wave,” she tells PEOPLE for a story in this week’s print issue tied to her new contemporary romance, Variation…